I tell clients they need to establish relationships with at least four professionals when starting a business including:

• Lawyer
• Banker
• Insurance Agent
• Accountant

As tax season kicks into full force many business owners may be considering hiring an accountant to complete their business taxes.  I always get worried when a business person tells me he or she does not have an accountant for their business.  In my view, a good accountant for your business is absolutely essential.

This article from About.com talks about how to hire the right accountant.  One of the best pieces of advice from the article is that you should make sure your accountant works on business tax returns.  Not all accountants specialize in business tax returns.  The article points out that big tax preparation chains such as H & R Block and Jackson Hewitt generally cater toward individuals and you may want to consider going elsewhere for business tax returns.

I wonder if fellow Iowa blogger and accountant, Joe Kristan could weigh in with some sage advice on this topic.